Nursing bottle holder



Nov. 19, 1963 E. LUDES NURSING BOTTLE HOLDER Filed April 3, 1961 IN V ENTOR United States Patent ()fiice 3,l l 12% Patented Nov. 19, 19633,111,296 NURSING BGTT'LE HGLDER Edward Ludes, 3224 Durand Drive,Holiywood 28, Calif. Filed Apr. 3, 1961, Ser. No. 100,239 3 Claims. (Cl.248-493) This invention relates to a holder for nursing bottles and hasfor an object to provide a holder that is capable of universaladjustment of its component parts to enable universal adjustment of afeeding or nursing bottle held thereby.

Another object of the invention is to provide a nursing bottle holderthat has substantially universal application to supports such as sidesof a baby carriage, walkers, cribs, and other furniture and vehiclesused for babies.

A further object of the invention is to provide, in combination with abottle holder of the character referred to,

a support member that is retained in operative position by the babybeing fed.

This invention also has for its objects to provide such means that arepositive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a workingposition and easily disconnected therefrom, economical of manufacture,relatively simple, and of general superiority and serviceability.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novelcombinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear inthe course of the following description and which is based on theaccompanying drawing. However, said drawing merely shows, and thefollowing description merely describes, one embodiment of the presentinvention, which is given by way of illustration or example only.

In the drawing, like reference characters designate similar parts in theseveral views.

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a nursing bottle holder embodying apreferred form of the present invention.

1G. 2 is an elevational view of said holder as seen from the left inFIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the upper portion of the holder.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view as taken on the line 44 ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary side el vational view showing the engagement ofthe clamp with a thin edge of a supporting means.

FIG. 6 is a view taken from the right hand side of FIG. 5.

The illustrated embodiment of the invention comprises an adjustableholder 5 for a nursing bottle B here shown as detachably mounted on asupport member 6 adapted to be held in operative position by a babylying on a laterally extending flange portion 36 of said support memher.

The holder 5 comprises, generally, a spring biased, pincers-like clampmeans 7 with adjustable clamp pads 8, a mount bracket 9 carried by saidclamp and swivelly adjustable with respect to the clamp 7 as indicatedby the two-headed arrow a, a clamp bracket 16 carried by the bracket 9and rotationally adjustable with respect to the latter bracket asindicated by the two-headed arrow b, the planes of rotation of arrows aand b being normal to each other, support rod means 11 carried by theclamp bracket 19 adjustable longitudinally according to the twoheadedarrow c and rotationally on its axis according to the two-headed arrowa, a mounting bracket 12 carried by one end of the support rod means 11adjustable relative to said means according to the two-headed arrow e,and a bottle clamp 13 carried by the bracket 12 swivelly rotational in aplane normal to the plane of rotation of said bracket 12. It will beclear, therefore, that a bottle B held in said clamp 13 may be adjustedtowardand from the clamp 5, and in the directions of the arrows a, b, c,d and e to so locate and dispose the same that its liquid-dischargingend is directed as desired to feed a baby, without the need for manuallyholding the bottle. Also, when the clamp means is engaged with a supportas, for example, the member 6, the weight of a baby disposed thereonholds the support steady and, therefore, a bottle mounted in the clamp13 and suitably adjusted in the holder will be held steady in acomfortable feeding position.

The clamp means '7 is shown as a spring biased, pincerslike devicecomprised of members 15 connected intermediate their ends by a hinge 16and are shown having upper ends formed as handles engaged and biased bythe arms of a torsion spring 17 having a coil surrounding the hinge pin16 to move the outer ends of said handles away from each other and topress the pads 8 which are carried by hinge pins at the lower ends ofthe members 15 toward each other. The pivotal mounting of the pads onthe said hinge pins 18 at the lower ends of members 15 enable the padsto accommodate to the shape of any support to which the same areapplied. Tabs 19 on the end of the members 15 serve to limit therotational positions of the pads so the clamp may be applied and removedwith one hand. Said pads 3 are shaped so they will properly engage fiatas well as round or other shaped supports and the same are provided withrubber or felt liners 26 to obviate man-ing of the supports to which thepresent device may be removably affixed.

The mount bracket 9 is shown as comprising a lateral extension 21 on theupper end of one member 15, an angle piece 22 connected to saidextension by a pivot 23, and one or more friction washers 24 interposedbetween said extension and angle piece. The axis of pivot 23 isvertical. Hence, the angle piece may be adjusted on said pivotrotationally according to the mentioned arrows a. The washers providefor the adjustment being frictionally maintained, as set.

The clamp bracket 10 is shown as a clip 25 engaged around the rod 26 ofthe means 11, the same terminating in clamp arms 27 that are drawntogether by a wing bolt 28 passing through said arms and having threadedengagement with the angle piece 22. Although friction washers are notshown between the angle piece 22 and the clip 25, the same may be used,if desired, to insure maintenance of any angular adjustment of thebracket It relative to the bracket 9 according to the arrow b. At thesame time, longitudinal adjustment of the rod 11 in any positionaccording to arrow 0 and any rotational adjustment according to arrow dis maintained due to tightening of the clip 25 by the screw 28.

In addition to the rod 26, the support rod means 11 includes anenlargement 29 on one end of said rod, and a pivot 36 provided on theother end. The enlargement 29 obviates endwise separation of rod 26 fromthe clip 25 and the pivot 3i mounts the mounting bracket 12.

Said bracket 12 comprises an angle piece 31 that has one leg connectedto the pivot 3%), with friction washers 32 interposed between said legand a fiat formed in the rod 26, the other leg of the angle piece 31being directed to be normal to the length of rod 26. The piece 31 iscapable of adjustment relative to the rod 26 on the pivot 39, accordingto the arrow e, the adjustment being maintained by the friction washers32.

The bottle clamp 13 is shown as a spring clip 33 that frictionallyencompasses a bottle B and holds the same in any set longitudinalposition in said clip. A pivot 34 connects said clip 33 with thementioned normal leg of the angle piece 31 and friction washers 35 areprovided,

as before, to create a frictional connection between said clip and anglepiece so that a bottle may be positioned at any desired angle.

The support member 6 is shown as made of thin, pliable material, such asplastic, light metal (suitably coated) or fiber composition. The same isshown as having a flat base portion 36 with a support portion 37 alongone side edge. In this case, the portion 37 is formed as a rectangularmounting wall formed by bent and formed portions of the member 6.Regardless how the portion 37 is formed or even if it comprises aseparately applied part to the base portion 36, the same constitutes anelongated support part along which the clamp 7 may be moved to desiredposition. Of course, suitable bedding may be interposed between the baseportion 36 and the baby or the same may be disposed between a mattressor pad. In any case, the babys weight will retain the member 6 inposition, thereby insuring proper operative disposition of the bottle B.

Referring finally to FIGS. and 6, the purpose of the tongue elements 39,39 formed as integral portions of one of the clip members 15 and whichextend radially from the axial line of the hinge 16 toward the clamppads is illustrated. These tongue elements project in the same directionas the support engaging ends of the clamp forming members and aredisposed at the side thereof adjacent the other members. In those casesin which the holder is required to be mounted on a thin edge of asupporting means such as, for example, on infant carriers formed fromthin rigid sheet plastic such as shown for example at 40, the leverageof the weight of the bottie and the holding means on the hinge pins 18coupled with the fact that the force exerted by the spring 17 ineffecting the clamping action is considerably decreased, tends to makethe mounting less steady than is desirable. In such case, as shown inFIG. 6, the clamp 7 is moved over the edge of the support to be engageduntil the tongue elements 39, 39 extend alongside of the support edge.The clamp then, in effect, engages one side of the support at twopoints, the pad 8 and the tongue elements 39, 39 and at the other sideby the other pad 8 thus effecting a rigid engagement. The tongueelements can, of course, engage either side of the supporting edge asmay be found most convenient in positioning the bottle holding clamp.When the device is used on a thicker edge such as the portion 37 of thesupport 6 or on the side rail of a crib or the like, the engagement ofthe tongues therewith as shown in FIG. 1 is with the edge of the widersupport element and tends to resist lateral movement of the clamp sincelateral movement can then be achieved only with slippage of one or theother of the clamp pads on the surface engaged thereby. The tongues thuscontribute to the rigidity of the engagement with the wider supports,

White the foregoing has illustrated and described what is nowcontemplated to be the best mode of carrying out the invention, theconstruction is, of course, subject to modification without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it is not desiredto restrict the invention to the particular form of constructionillustrated and described, but to cover all modifications that may fallwithin the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described this invention, what is claimed and desired to besecured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a nursing bottle holding device, a resilient, bottle-engagingclamp, a spring biased, incers-like clamp detachably engageable with asupport adjacent to the infant to be supplied from the bottle andcarrying adjustable supporting means on which said bottle engaging clampis mounted; said incers-like clamp including means engageable with theedge or either side of the support engaged by said incers-like clamp andeffective in cooperation with the support engaged by said incers-likeclamp means to enable said pincers-like means to be self-securing by thespring bias thereof in different.

angular positions relative to the support engaged by said pincers-likeclamp means.

2. A nursing bottle holder as claimed in claim 1 in which said means forenabling said pincers-like clamp means to self-securingly engage thesupport in different angular positions comprises a tongue elementcarried by one of the members constituting said pincers-like clampmeans, and in which the end of said tongue element may be optionallyengaged with the edge of the support engaged by said incers-like clampmeans or a side of said tongue element may be engaged with a side of theengaged support to dispose said pincers-like clamp means at an angle tothe position thereof when the end of said tongue element engages thesupport.

3. A nursing bottle holding device as claimed in claim 2 in which saidbottle carrying means is detachably mounted on the one of said membersconstituting said pincers-like clamp means which also carries saidtongue element.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,554,201 Dalzell Sept. 22, 1925 1,688,765 Veras Oct. 23, 1928 1,753,875Baumann Apr. 8, 1930 2,334,610 Crawford Nov. 16, 1943 2,349,054 PhippsMay 16, 1944 2,483,303 Rysick Sept. 27, 1949 2,557,430 Hensley June 19,1951 2,585,592 Sears Feb. 12, 1952 2,605,069 Gillaspy July 29, 19522,690,107 Ludwig Sept. 28, 1954

1. IN A NURSING BOTTLE HOLDING DEVICE, A RESLILENT, BOTTLE-ENGAGINGCLAMP, A SPRING BIASED, PINCERS-LIKE CLAMP DETACHABLY ENGAGEABLE WITH ASUPPORT ADJACENT TO THE INFANT TO BE SUPPLIED FROM THE BOTTLE ANDCARRYING ADJUSTABLE SUPPORTING MEANS ON WHICH SAID BOTTLE ENGAGING CLAMPIS MOUNTED; SAID PINCERS-LIKE CLAMP INCLUDING MEANS ENGAGEABLE WITH THEEDGE OR EITHER SIDE OF THE SUPPORT ENGAGED BY SAID PINCERS-LIKE CLAMPAND EFFECTIVE IN COOPERATION WITH THE SUPPORT ENGAGED BY SAIDPINCERS-LIKE CLAMP MEANS TO ENABLE SAID PINCERS-LIKE MEANS TO BESELF-SECURING BY THE SPRING BIAS THEREOF IN DIFFERENT ANGULAR POSITIONSRELATIVE TO THE SUPPORT ENGAGED BY SAID PINCERS-LIKE CLAMP MEANS.